Several weeks ago I was up late one night watching reruns of “The Nightmare Room,” on television; a show I remember watching when I was a kid. The girl playing the main character in one episode was very familiar to me, but I couldn’t place her. As the credits rolled, I saw the actress was none other than Amanda Bynes, an actress I saw constantly on shows like “The Amanda Show,” and “All That!” who would later go on to lead tween romance movies including Hairspray, Sidney White, and Easy A. I never thought I would see her in anything horror related.
While she is far from an A-list celebrity, seeing Amanda Bynes in a horror title made me wonder: how many other big name talents appeared in horror and scifi titles in their heyday? It’s a well known fact that Johnny Depp got his first Hollywood break by appearing in A Nightmare on Elm Street in 1984. With all this in mind, I compiled a list of actors and actresses, A-list stars both past and present who have appeared in horror and scifi titles. The list is provided for you below, and I think some of the entries will surprise you!
Grace Kelly
Awards: 1 Oscar
Also Known For: High Noon, Rear Window, To Catch A Thief
Horror/Scifi Titles: Dial M For Murder (1954)
Clint Eastwood
Awards: 4 Oscars
Also Known For: Million Dollar Baby, Gran Torino
Horror/Scifi Titles: Revenge of the Creature (1955) and Tarantula (1955)
Bette Davis
Awards: 2 Oscars
Also Known For: Jezebel, All About Eve
Horror/Scifi Titles: What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)
Judi Dench
Awards: 1 Oscar
Also Known For: Casino Royale, Quantum of Silence, Skyfall
Horror/Scifi Titles: A Study in Terror (1965)
Joan Crawford
Awards: 1 Oscar
Also Known For: Grand Hotel, Johnny Guitar, Mildred Place
Horror/Scifi Tiles: Trog (1970)
Elizabeth Taylor
Awards: 2 Oscars
Also Known For: A Place in the Sun, Giant, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Horror/Scifi Titles: Night Watch (1973)
Richard Burton
Awards: Nominated for 7 Oscars
Also Known For: Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Where Eagles Dare
Horror/Scifi Titles: Exorcist III: The Heretic (1977)
Natalie Wood
Awards: Nominated for 3 Oscars
Also Known For: Rebel Without A Cause, West Side Story
Horror/Scifi Titles: Meteor (1979), Brainstorm (1983)
Kirk Douglas
Awards: Nominated for 3 Oscars
Also Known For: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Spartacus
Horror/Scifi Titles: Saturn 3 (1980)
Tom Hanks
Awards: 2 Oscars
Also Known For: Forrest Gump, Saving Private Ryan, The Green Mile
Horror/Scifi Titles: He Knows You’re Alone (1980)
George C. Scott
Awards: 1 Oscar
Also Known For: The Hustler, Patton
Horror/Scifi Titles: The Changeling (1980), Firestarter (1984), The Exorcist III (1990)
Fred Astaire
Awards: Nominated for 1 Oscar
Also Known For: Top Hat, Swing Time, Funny Face
Horror/Scifi Titles: Ghost Story (1981)
Hope Lange
Awards: Nominated for 1 Oscar
Also Known For: Blue Velvet, Death WIsh
Horror/Scifi Titles: A Nightmare on Elm Street 2 (1985)
Robert De Niro
Awards: 2 Oscars
Also Known For: Goodfellas, Casino, Meet the Parents
Horror/Scifi Titles: Cape Fear (1991) and Frankenstein (1994)
Sandra Bullock
Awards: 1 Oscar
Also Known For: Miss Congeniality, Crash, Gravity
Horror/Scifi Titles: The Vanishing (1993)
